Narbethong is a town in central

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, Australia. It is located on the

Maroondah Highway Maroondah Highway (also known as Whitehorse Road from Deepdene to Surrey Hills) is a major east–west thoroughfare in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and a highway connecting the north-eastern fringes of Melbourne to Mansfield, at the lowe ...

, north east of the state capital,

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

. At the 2021 census, Narbethong had a population of 201.

History

The first European settlement at Narbethong was established in about 1865 by Frederick Fisher. Fisher built a 12-room hotel, the ''Black Spur Inn'', on the road which was being built to link Melbourne with the new goldfield at

Woods Point Woods Point is a town in east-central Victoria, Australia and is located on the banks of the Goulburn River. At the , Woods Point and the surrounding area had a population of 33, down from 37 in . History The town began as a general store buil ...

. Fisher came from the town of Narberth in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, so it is likely that the name Narbethong was based on that. However, there are also claims that Narbethong is an Aboriginal word meaning ''cheerful'', or ''cheerful place''. Narbethong Post Office opened on 16 October 1883 in a small room at the hotel. In about 1886 the post office moved from the hotel into a small building. The telegraph service was connected to Narbethong in 1891, with the wires being strung along fences and attached to trees. In 1939 the post office building, which was then part of a store and petrol station, was completely destroyed in the

Black Friday bushfires The Black Friday bushfires of 13 January 1939, in Victoria, Australia, were part of the devastating 1938–1939 bushfire season in Australia, which saw bushfires burning for the whole summer, and ash falling as far away as New Zealand. It was c ...

. The Post Office closed in 1993. A primary school opened in Narbethong on 7 July 1903. It originally was part-time, sharing a teacher with Marysville and

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...

. In 1913, the Healesville Shire health officer reported that a lack of ventilation made the building a health hazard for students and teachers. A new school building was officially opened by Lord Huntingfield, the

Governor of Victoria The governor of Victoria is the representative of Monarchy of Australia, the monarch, currently King Charles III, in the Australian state of Victoria (state), Victoria. The governor is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the premier of V ...

, on 9 April 1937. The town was devastated in the Black Friday bushfires in 1939. Initial reports suggested that the hotel was the only building left standing. but other buildings survived including the school and The Hermitage. Narbethong was again severely affected by the

Black Saturday bushfires The Black Saturday bushfires were a series of bushfires that either ignited or were already burning across the Australian state of Victoria. Saturday, 7 February 2009 was one of Australia's all-time worst bushfire disasters. The fires occurred ...

in 2009. In 2011, a new public hall was built using local timbers, with the whole building being wrapped in a bronze mesh fire resistant screen. It was officially opened on 26 November 2011 by the Governor of Victoria,

Alex Chernov Alex Chernov (born 12 May 1938) is an Australian lawyer, judge and barrister who served as the 28th Governor of Victoria, from 2011 to 2015. Chernov also served as Vice-President of the Australian Bar Association, from 1986 to 1987, President ...

. A scene in the 1959 film '' On the Beach'' was set in Narbethong. It featured the characters played by

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 12th-greatest male ...

and

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

spending their first night together.

References

External links

*
Narbethong Post Office 1901 photograph

Narbethong Post Office 1925 photograph
Towns in Victoria (state) Shire of Murrindindi {{Hume-geo-stub